


Cruel To Be Kind

by Anonymous



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Broken wing, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Protective Winchesters (Supernatural), Sedation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-23
Updated: 2018-09-23
Packaged: 2019-07-16 00:38:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,055
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16074719
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: When Cas's wing is broken on a hunt, it takes Dean, Sam and Jack to help the angel.But it isn't pleasant.





	Cruel To Be Kind

**Author's Note:**

> For a meme prompt.

Cas screams. 

It’s not the first time they’ve heard that sound. God help them, it probably won’t be the last, not with what passes for their luck. 

The old bastard, the one luring in and killing hunters and selling their bones, laughs. He claps his hands gleefully, as if this is the most fun he’s had in years, while Cas slumps over, on his knees, panting. 

He stops laughing when Dean shoots him, one perfect shot that slams his head back and spatters the walls with blood and brains. 

Sam scoops up the spell book he was holding, his place saved by a ribbon bookmark, and hastily reads the counter incantation. 

The air around Cas shimmers and Sam wants to close his eyes. He wants to pray that this spell isn’t what he thinks, but the only worthwhile prayers are the ones they send to Cas and he’s the one in need of prayer right now. 

If Sam’s right. 

He is. 

Cas’s wings are huge and dark, with a neon line of blue staggered across their span. His left wing hangs limply against his back, but his right…

His right seems trapped in invisible amber, stretched out above him and twisted at a sickening angle. 

Then the last of the magic fades and the wing drops suddenly. 

Cas doesn’t scream this time. His eyes roll back in his head and that’s it. He’s gone, and they barely catch him in time before he hits the floor. 

++

While Dean drives, Sam rigs a makeshift sling that keeps Cas’s wing as immobile as possible. 

He’s still out, mercifully oblivious to Sam’s efforts, and Sam hopes he stays that way at least until they get to the bunker. Because his wing….

That year Sam took out, after Dean and Cas were lost to him, he helped Amelia plenty in her clinic. And people brought in a fair few birds. And one of them..

Something had got it. The wing was twisted and snapped, flesh and feathers shredded, and they stayed up with it all night after doing the best they could to mend the damage. 

Come morning, she had to put it down anyway, and it was in pain the whole time. 

Sam doesn't know what they’ll do if there isn't anything they can do to help Cas. 

++

Jack’s a good kid. Head screwed on right, like his parents, but there's obvious panic in his eyes when he sees them carrying his dad in. 

When he sees what's wrong. 

“Infirmary,” Dean snaps, when Jack doesn't move, and that shakes him out of it. He races ahead and the room’s prepped when they reach it: lights on, first aid kit open on the table. 

The box with the pads and sedative is there too. Sam hopes they don't have to use it. 

But he should have known better. The minute they set Cas down, he gives a shudder and comes to. 

And the minute the pain hits him, Sam sees it. His eyes widen and his mouth opens but there's no sound. Like the agony is too much to fit into words or cries. 

They didn't expect him to scrabble for the wing though: tear at the splint like a trapped thing and- 

“Cas, no!” Sam cups the angel’s face just as Dean grabs his hands and pins them to his chest. “We got you out, free. But it broke your wing, Cas. That's a splint. You need to stay still so we can help you. Can you do that?”

Cas stares at him, eyes wet. _Please, Cas_ , he prays. _Please, trust me_. 

Cas nods, slowly, and Sam pats his cheek. 

Now...now they can get started. 

++ 

They should send Jack out, but they need all the help they can get. And though he looks scared, sickened, he looks just as determined to help his dad. 

There's no moving him, no matter what they think. 

They assess the damage first, which means touching, and Cas goes rigid with the effort of not bucking off the table. 

Some feathers are beyond saving. 

But the break…

Sam can feel the fractures. Some are not too bad but he can feel one bone in particular that's dislocated. Everything else will heal. That one has to go back in place. 

Dean's felt it too, and they tell Cas quietly what they need to do. 

Cas nods, and Sam feels the trembling worsen through the wing. 

“Gonna make this as quick as we can, Cas.”

He gets Dean to hold the wing steady, and he finds where he needs to push. It should be straightforward. 

It isn't. The bone grinds and sticks and Cas cries out his name in desperation. Sam can't stop now though; he tells Dean to bend the wing, just enough for the curve to work for them and not against them. 

Dean looks at him like he's crazy but he does it. 

Cas screams, and then the sound muffles. Sam looks, panicked. Jack's holding a pad soaked in the sedative over Cas's mouth and nose and it acts as fast as last time. 

But the fear in Cas's eyes is unmistakable. He hates it, and so do they, but sometimes…

There's just no choice. 

He goes limp after a few moments. Jack removes the pad. He looks wrecked but Dean nods approvingly at him. 

Sam's hands are shaking but then he feels the bone click and it's done. 

“We need to strap it up,” he says. 

Dean pulls over the trolley with their gear. “Let's clean it up and get rid of the busted feathers first. Kid, we’ve got it from here.”

Jack shakes his head. He grabs the alcohol wipes and waits as Dean picks up the fine pliers and pinches the base of the first feather. 

++

They always stay close while they wait for Cas to come around. He's usually confused and scared and they are always the first people he looks for. 

Too often he's woken up in the hands of enemies or strangers. He needs to wake up and know this time he's safe and with them. 

Until then, they rest. Jack’s asleep on one of the other beds. Sam and Dean are sitting either side of Cas, just watching and waiting. 

It may take hours yet for Cas to wake, but it's time well spent.


End file.
